Of Breathing and Comforting Brothers
by SubtleBubbles
Summary: A nightmare leads to the equivalent of an asthma attack for our favorite leader in blue. With several late nights already under his belt, Donatello starts feeling under the weather himself after staying up the rest of the night to watch over Leo and the eldest is not amused. Michelangelo is hurt that no one thought to inform him what happened. Raphael reassures. FLUFF ABOUNDS.
1. The Attack

**A/N: The Turtles aren't mine- I just gave Leo bad lungs. Rating for a couple of bad words, but this is all fluff:]**

Donatello was used to being startled. He regularly got completely absorbed in what he was doing, but he usually was able to keep a small part of his mind unoccupied to make sure the lair wasn't burning down or his family under attack.

However this time around, that small part was currently preoccupied with how lousy he had been feeling for the last couple of days. Most of it was due to sheer exhaustion- he'd gotten about six total hours of sleep in the past three days thanks to his latest project.

He certainly wasn't expecting a hand to come down on his shoulder, and flinched visibly before the unavoidable irritation took over, "Raph! What-"

"It's Leo- he can't breathe."

All traces of sleep left him in an instant and he started towards Leo's room with Raphael at his heels. "What happened?"

"Dunno. Woke up an' heard 'im coughin. He can't seem ta stop." Raphael clenched and unclenched his fists uneasily as they entered the room, hating that he couldn't do more.

"Leo?" Donatello's heart sank as he took in Leo's current condition.

The turtle was hunched over and cross-legged on the ground, clutching a pillow to his chest, and plastron heaving with every hoarse breath he tried to take. His face was pale and he was trembling, sweat gleamed on his face. "Can you talk?" Donatello knelt in front of him.

Leo swallowed hard, "Sort of," he wheezed, lapsing into a fit of violent coughing.

"Slow, steady breaths, come on bro." Donatello sat down next to his brother, "Breathe in with me, you can do it."

"It'll pass Leo- it always does," Raphael added, taking a seat in front of his brothers to wait it out.

"Raph do you know where the inhaler is?" Donatello whispered.

"He had it before- maybe it fell behind the bed." Raphael started looking as well. It took a few moments to find it but finally Donatello held the small device up triumphantly, "All right you know the drill," he handed it to his brother and rubbed his shell in small circles.

Twenty minutes and two cycles of albuterol later and Leo's wheezing was finally starting to ease. "How's the pain level?" Donatello asked. The turtle held up all three fingers of his left hand.

"Well that's an improvement." Raphael said grimly. Earlier Leo had gasped a seven.

"How are you feeling?"

"Sore. Tired." Leo's breathing was still a little too shallow for Donatello's liking.

"To be honest I'd really feel a lot better if you slept in the med room tonight. Is that okay?"

Leo hesitated, but he really didn't want to chance feeling so horrible again and finally acquiesced. "I'll stay up with him just to monitor his breathing." Donatello said in a low voice to Raphael as they helped Leo to his feet.

"Don that's not good for you-"

"It's fine," Donatello waved him off and shouldered Leo's weight, "I had a journal I needed to finish reading tonight anyways. It's just a few hours."

Raphael maintained eye contact with his brother for several seconds before sighing, "Aight. Feel better bro." He clapped Leo on the shoulder and left the room.

"How did this start?" Don asked as Leo sank down onto the nearest cot.

"Had a nightmare." The oldest turtle stared pointedly at the floor.

"Anything you want to talk about?" Donatello knew his brother rarely ever told them what happened in his nightmares- but clearly they were bad.

As predicted, Leo shook his head, "'m fine."

"I want to check your peak flow before you go to sleep," Donatello returned with the machine and they shared a comfortable silence as he went through the routine. "You're definitely low, but you aren't in the danger zone. I'll wake you up if your breathing starts to get weird."

"Thanks Donny." Leo whispered, curling up tightly on his side and falling asleep in seconds.

Donatello sighed, grateful his brother had been able to respond to the medicine. It didn't happen often but sometimes the inhaler didn't help- and that was when things would really get scary.

Once he was sure that Leo was truly asleep he left quickly to grab his things and a mug of coffee. _Looks like I'm not getting much sleep tonight either_.

_TBC_


	2. Morning After

**Part Two.**

Mikey knew the moment he stepped foot in the empty kitchen that something was off. Leo was always sitting at the table rehydrating after an early morning meditation or kata practice. The coffeemaker was on but only Raphael's mug was waiting.

His gaze flitted to the old clock propped above the stove to check the time and he frowned, this was definitely out of character for his oldest brother. Knowing better than to try Leo's room however he decided to wait it out and make Raphael do the honors.

He was just taking the first set of pancakes off the stove when his hot headed brother entered.

"Sup." Raphael strode to the coffeemaker and inhaled the aroma of his drink appreciatively.

"Hi Raph!" Mikey replied brightly, "Have you seen Leo? He's usually been up forever but I haven't seen him yet."

Raphael remembered with a jolt Michelangelo had slept through the entire incident the night before and knew his brother wouldn't take kindly to being left out of the loop.

"What?"

Belatedly he realized he'd openly cringed at his brother, _shit_. "He had an attack las' night- Don stayed up ta keep an eye on 'im in the med room." he forced himself to keep eye contact as Michelangelo's devastated expression grew irritated and settled on upset. "We were kinda preoccupied Mikey, we didn't need-" _Shit_. The lack of sleep had clearly gotten to him- "Mike I didn't mean it like that!" he yelled after his brother's retreating figure. Swallowing the rest of his plea he gulped down the rest of his coffee and rose to follow the turtle.

Leo woke up sore and confused- _why am I in the med room_? Then everything from the night before came back to him in a rush- waking up and not being able to stop coughing, Raphael's panicked questions, Donatello helping him with the inhaler. _That explains why I feel like crap_. His chest was painfully tight and his head was currently pulsing in time with his heart. He buried his face in the mattress, regretting it immediately as the little air he was getting was cut off. His lungs gave a painful spasm and he was off, coughing harshly into a fist and trying to push himself up.

"Leo- stop it." Donatello appeared at his side immediately helping him up and rubbing his shell. "Do you need the inhaler?"

Leo couldn't keep from scowling, he hated feeling dependent on something so small as the hunk of plastic.

"Leo?"

He realized he hadn't responded and gave a small nod, accepting the inhaler and putting it to use.

Donatello took advantage of his brother's distraction to focus on blocking out the dizziness he was sure had come from leaping up from the bed. Pulling an all-nighter definitely hadn't done him any favors, he was feeling incredibly shaky and lightheaded- but he didn't let that get in the way. Effects of an attack lingered long after the actual event, and smaller attacks often followed, so monitoring of Leo's condition was crucial. "How are you feeling?"

"Ugh." Leo let himself slump back onto the cot. "What time is it?" he remembered, suddenly feeling panicked.

"No Leo you aren't training today. I'm going to tell sensei about last night and you're taking the day off." Donatello huffed in exasperation as Leo started to protest, "I can make it a week if I have to so don't push it," he added sharply, and Leo fell silent. "No one's invincible bro." Donatello said, not sure of what else he could say to distract his brother's obsessive tendencies.

They both looked up as Michelangelo ran past the room. "I'm going to-" Donatello stopped short as Raphael followed their youngest brother up the hall.

"Mike stop it! Jeez."

Don turned back to Leonardo, "I'm going to go tell sensei what's up. _Please_ don't move Leo."

Ordinarily Leo would have protested, but something was off in his brother's tone that drove him to zip it and he nodded in assent.

Donatello stumbled twice on the way to his father's room. Head spinning, he stopped for a breath before knocking on the door. "Enter my son." Splinter was kneeling on his tatami mats. "Is everything all right Donatello?" his apt eyes observed a slight tremor in Donatello's hands and the lack of sleep clearly evident in his eyes.

"I-It's Leo father," Donatello winced mentally as he stuttered and hurried on to get to the point. "He had an attack last night and he's doing better this morning but I really don't think he should be allowed in the dojo-" "Absolutely not. He should not risk a relapse in his condition." Splinter said. "Is that all?" He sensed not all was well.

"I'm fine." Donatello said, much too quickly.

His father held eye contact before he finally looked away in chagrin, "I stayed up to make sure Leo's breathing wouldn't get any worse." He admitted in a low voice.

"Donatello," Splinter didn't have to say much more. "You must rest my son."

"I'll be okay. Thank you father." Donatello bowed and left quickly before the rat could protest. Splinter shook his head- something told him he'd regret not prying.


	3. All's Well That Ends Well

"Mikey you're bein' dumb come on." Raphael resisted the urge to kick his brother's door. "The only reason I knew was cos our rooms are right next ta each other. Think about it, If 'e was fine why would we wake ya up ta say so?"

Stubborn silence reigned behind the door for several seconds before Michelangelo reappeared, "Sorry. Hey!" he protested as Raphael grabbed him in a playful headlock.

"Me too Mikey. But cha really didn' miss much bro. It ain't fun watchin' Fearless cough 'is lungs out. All I could do was sit there and hope 'is inhaler worked."

Mikey sighed, "At least you were there for him."

"Hey hey hey, don't start with that. He wasn' lookin' ta see who was in tha room, he was tryna breathe!" He finally sighed, seeing Mikey's glum expression. "Look let's eat. We'll go see 'im and Don in the med room later. Sound good?" Michelangelo finally nodded.

Donatello trudged back to the med room and was both pleased and disappointed to find his older brother still in bed.

"Do I have to stay here all day Donny?" Leo rasped, hating that he was out of commission for at least a day now.

Donatello sighed, "No, you can go wherever you want for now but I recommend you get some sleep, unless you're hungry?"

Leo swallowed hard, "Not particularly." He felt weak and shivery as though he'd been sick for a week rather than less than twelve hours.

"What's your pain level right now?"

"I'd say about three."

No better or worse than the night before. Donatello nodded, "I'm going to training, call us if you need anything okay?"

"I think I'll go see what's on the news." Leo got slowly to his feet, as his brother left.

"Don you ain't thinkin' of trainin are ya?" Raphael asked incredulously.

"Donny you stayed up _all_ night." Mikey said.

"Donatello. You are excused from training today." Splinter said from the front of the room, "Please get some rest my son."

"Shut up Don." Raphael cut him off before he could say anything to protest.

Donatello sighed, grateful despite himself, "_Arigato_ sensei," he bowed and left.

"That was way too easy." Raphael muttered suspiciously to Mikey, who shrugged.

"He's never been one to argue with Splinter. Besides did you see how pale he was? Bet you next choice of pizza toppings he's getting sick."

He shuffled to the kitchen, eyes burning with exhaustion. He'd poured himself a cup of coffee and started drinking before he realized what he was doing. "Oh _no_." Too late, he felt the caffeine shooting through his system. His headache flared up again and not even the hot liquid did anything for the chills that had enveloped him since before Leo had woken up. He sneezed three times in a row and had to grab on to a chair to steady himself. Finally able to see straight again, he decided to go numb his thoughts with the television. _Aw shell_, he realized the tv was on already and Leo had taken up residence on one side of the couch.

Leo had to admit, the news weren't the best pick-me-up for when you already weren't feeling well physically. He wasn't cold, but he was wrapped in his favorite blanket for added comfort. The attacks drained him at best and left him sore, and the excess of medication usually added an unwelcome nausea to the picture. Thankfully he hadn't needed to use the inhaler again yet, but he knew it was too soon to let his guard looked up in surprise as familiar footsteps approached.

"Don?" he croaked, "Why aren't you in training- is something wrong?"

"Hm?" Donatello took a second too long to respond, "Everything is fine- Splinter isn't letting me train because I stayed up is all."

Leo frowned, "Why aren't you sleeping now?"

"I just wanted to check up on you."

It was a weak excuse, and typically Leo would have called his bluff right away but he didn't catch it in his current state and merely nodded, turning his gaze back to the TV.

"How are you feeling?" Donatello couldn't resist the call of the couch and sank down next to his brother with relief.

"My chest is still really sore and it hurts to talk," Leo admitted slowly.

"Do you want some tea?" Donatello asked, referring to his much loved drink of choice.

"Not at the moment," Leo grimaced slightly, one hand rubbing his plastron almost subconsciously. Donatello nodded in understanding and also turned to the TV.

Neither of them were really watching the program- Leo had changed the channel to some daytime soap that Splinter probably knew all about, but Donatello was currently trying to beat past his headache and Leo was now silently analyzing his brother. Despite his own current ailment, he could tell his younger brother was not as well as he seemed. He could feel Donatello trembling, and picked up on sniffs and a cough or two now and again from the turtle. "Donny aren't you tired?"

"No," the purple-masked teen replied faintly.

"You're shaking." Leo pointed out. "Donny-" he reached out with his right hand, gently pulling his brother into a one armed embrace.

"What's wrong? D-do you need something? I can-"

"Thanks." Leo interrupted, having simultaneously confirmed Donatello was running a fever and knowing the stutter meant he clearly wasn't feeling well himself.

"Huh?" Don tried to wrap his fevered brain around what Leo meant, but didn't push his brother away, unconsciously leaning into his cooler touch.

Leo's older brother instincts had now kicked in full force and he was determined not to let Donatello argue his way out. "What's wrong?" he asked, not letting go.

"m fine." Donatello mumbled.

"You've been pushing yourself too hard this week bro, just relax for once. I'm okay- I'm going to be fine thanks to your help last night. Now you need to look after yourself."

Exhaustion took the reins and Donatello finally opened up, "I was so t-tired I drank coffee b-by accident," he said miserably. "I- I _want_ to sleep but I _can't_."

"Shhh," Leo rubbed his shoulder comfortingly, "I've got you Donny. Just relax. Slow your breathing." He surreptitiously draped his blanket over the younger turtle, "You'll feel better soon _otuoto_."

When the rest of the family finished in the dojo, they discovered the pair sleeping soundly on the couch. Leo still had a hand protectively on his brother's carapace even in slumber, and his head drooped forward onto his plastron. Donatello was leaning on his shoulder, wrapped snugly in a blanket and snoring slightly due to congestion that proved Mikey's earlier theory.

Raphael whipped out the camera and tossed it to his younger brother, but it was quickly intercepted by Splinter- who captured the moment from several different angles before his sons could protest.

END

_arigato_- thank you

_otuoto_- little brother

**A/N: So what did you think?**

**I know a lot of fictions tend to give asthma to Mikey or Don but my headcanon gives it to Leo. It adds some honest vulnerability to him despite his being the eldest and the leader it provides ample opportunity for him to learn that sometimes its okay to lean on his brothers as they lean on him. :] Though to keep it in line with their story it is not exercise-induced and is only really an issue when he is sick or when particularly bad nightmares come along.**


End file.
